TIP: There are a few key upgrades that are essential for this fight. First, if you haven't upgraded the Direct Heavy Combo yet, do so now. Also, the max amount of Daggers is crucial for this fight, so go back and pick up all the Dagger Upgrades from the previous areas before going into battle. Finally, make sure to charge up Shadow Magic fully before starting the fight at the neutral elemental magic statue.

This is the first “real” boss battle in this game and is far more difficult than many of the other encounters so far in the game. Cornell has two forms and there are three different stages of this fight, each with their own challenges.

Cheap Shots

Charge up the Tremor Punch at the beginning of the fight to send Cornell flying to the ground.

At the start of this fight there are a few opportunities to get some cheap shots on Cornell and give yourself the advantage before the real fight begins. As soon as the battle begins, charge up the Tremor Punch using the Gauntlet and release it as Cornell approaches you. From here, roll backwards and charge up the Tremor Punch once again. Cornell will rush you after he recovers from the first attack but will be just out of range to do any damage. After the second hit with the Gauntlet’s Tremor Punch, lay into him with three Daggers, then immediately activate Shadow Magic and run away.

Cornell - Part 1

Use the extra Shadow Magic to inflict big damage on Cornell but be sure to save some for the next part of this battle as well.

After landing the initial set of attacks, you will want to use up the extra amount of Shadow Magic received from charging it past its max point at the neutral elemental orb statue at the beginning of the stage. Dodge incoming attacks and retaliate with the Direct Heavy Attack which is the most damaging and safest way to approach Cornell. After the extra amount of Shadow Magic is depleted from the meter, deactivate Shadow Magic to save it for the next part of this battle.

The Guillotine follow up attack is very effective against Cornell after avoiding his shock wave attack.

The one other way to inflict big damage on Cornell is when he slams the ground to create a shock wave. Jump the shock wave attack and come down with the Guillotine Attack, holding down Direct Attack button for the follow up hit. As soon as the follow up attack hits, charge up the Tremor Punch and release it at it’s max charge to dish out big damage and knock Cornell to the ground.

TIP: The recovery frames on the Guillotine follow up attack can be canceled into charging the Gauntlet so this is a great way to land extra damage and punish Cornell whenever he performs the shock wave attack.

Lycanthrope Dark Lord - Part 2

After depleting all of Cornell’s life, he will transform into the Lycanthrope Dark Lord and oddly enough this form is easier to fight than the previous. Start off by immediately using a Dark Crystal to take off a chunk of the Dark Lord’s life. From here, activate Shadow Magic and use the rest of what’s left in your meter to put the hurt on the Dark Lord with the Direct Heavy Attack.

Lay into the Dark Lord with all the Daggers left in your inventory to take of fa big chunk of his life.

After using up all the Shadow Magic, switch over to using Daggers in that this is one of the Dark Lord’s a major weaknesses. It’s best to use Daggers while the Dark Lord is recovering from his charge attack. Fire away with Daggers and use up every last one in your inventory.

After the Dark Lord charges is a great time to counter-attack.

After all this, the Dark Lord will be down to about 25% health and the rest of the fight just comes down to avoiding any incoming attacks and counter-attacking with the Direct Heavy Attack or Guillotine Attack. Try to stay in the middle areas of the stage and avoid being cornered by the Dark Lord.

Final Attack - Part 3

The last part of this battle is fairly straight forward but can still prove to be a problem, especially if you’re low on life at this point. Each boulder on the edge of the arena must be destroyed to finish off the Dark Lord. The first Boulder can be destroyed with a single hit. The next few boulders will only take a few hits to destroy, but the ones there after will take more of a beating before crumbling. It’s best to use the Guillotine Attack with the follow-up attack to destroy the remaining boulders. Just be sure to roll out of the way before the Dark Lord gets too close.

Complete the QTE to finish the fight!

After destroying the boulders, the game will go into a cut-scene, but don’t start to relax just yet. Finish off the few QTE’s to send the Dark Lord to his grave and finish the fight. After the fight you will receive the Cyclone Boots.